On Friday, the first round of boaters took to the water. Captain William Ervin and his group from Loxley were one of the contestants. They went spearfishing more than a dozen miles out and made it back with dozens of Lion Fish just in time for weigh in. "You don’t realize they’re out there because the average fishermen doesn’t catch them with their rod and reel. But we can go down there and actually catch them with our pole spears,” said Ervin. The species may be stunning to look at but experts say they’re dangerous and not just from the venomous spines on the top of its body.